Jezter
07-11-2011, 10:26 AM
In Apple Inc.'s latest effort to control its U.S. trademark for the term "App Store," a law firm representing the company sent a cease-and-desist letter to wireless-application store operator GetJar.
According to a letter reviewed by The Wall Street Journal dated June 22, lawyers from New York's Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP requested that San Mateo, Calif.-based GetJar stop using "App Store" on its website and elsewhere, and refrain from using the term in the future. The lawyers suggested that the company instead use the terms "mobile download service" or "application download service".
The letter highlights the importance of Apple's App Store to its mobile strategy and how much it views the storefront as a way to differentiate itself from competitors.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company, which registered for the trademark App Store in 2008, has been embroiled in a legal fight with Amazon.com Inc. over the online retailer's use of the term as mobile-application stores become a key feature for many smartphones. When Amazon launched its Amazon Android AppStore this March, Apple filed suit, demanding that Amazon stop using the term.
Earlier this week, Apple suffered a setback in its case against Amazon when a federal judge denied its request for a preliminary injunction to stop Amazon from using the name. The judge said that Apple "has not established a likelihood of success" that Amazon's use of the term had diluted Apple's App Store brand. The case is set to go to trial in October. Microsoft Corp. is also challenging the trademark.
GetJar CEO Ilja Laurs said in a statement that the company plans to continue to use "App Store" to describe the company's business, indicating an intention to fight back.
"GetJar has been in the business of offering apps to consumers since 2005, well before Apple, and helped to pioneer the model that the general public understands as an app store today," said Mr. Laurs in a statement. "We have built a strong, global and growing business around this model, and plan to continue to use the phrase "app store" to describe what we do. This move by Apple is yet more proof that the company tends to act as if it is above the law, and even as one of the smaller players in the space, we won't be bullied by Apple."
A spokeswoman for Apple didn't comment on the letter to GetJar. Commenting on the injunction denial in the Amazon case, she reiterated a statement—issued in March when Apple brought suit—that the company "asked Amazon to not copy the App Store name because it will confuse and mislead customers."
GetJar may be able to fight the suit from Apple due to a $25 million investment in February from Tiger Global Management LLC and Accel Partners.
Others have not fared as well. Amahi, a small software maker who received a similar letter, said recently on its website that it doesn't "have the resources to fight this battle." Instead, the company is holding a contest among its users to rename its application marketplace.
GetJar currently offers 150,000 free mobile applications that work on Google Inc.'s Android and other mobile operating systems, and it has seen more than two billion downloads to date. Apple recently said its App Store passed 15 billion downloads, with 425,000 apps available.
According to a letter reviewed by The Wall Street Journal dated June 22, lawyers from New York's Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP requested that San Mateo, Calif.-based GetJar stop using "App Store" on its website and elsewhere, and refrain from using the term in the future. The lawyers suggested that the company instead use the terms "mobile download service" or "application download service".
The letter highlights the importance of Apple's App Store to its mobile strategy and how much it views the storefront as a way to differentiate itself from competitors.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company, which registered for the trademark App Store in 2008, has been embroiled in a legal fight with Amazon.com Inc. over the online retailer's use of the term as mobile-application stores become a key feature for many smartphones. When Amazon launched its Amazon Android AppStore this March, Apple filed suit, demanding that Amazon stop using the term.
Earlier this week, Apple suffered a setback in its case against Amazon when a federal judge denied its request for a preliminary injunction to stop Amazon from using the name. The judge said that Apple "has not established a likelihood of success" that Amazon's use of the term had diluted Apple's App Store brand. The case is set to go to trial in October. Microsoft Corp. is also challenging the trademark.
GetJar CEO Ilja Laurs said in a statement that the company plans to continue to use "App Store" to describe the company's business, indicating an intention to fight back.
"GetJar has been in the business of offering apps to consumers since 2005, well before Apple, and helped to pioneer the model that the general public understands as an app store today," said Mr. Laurs in a statement. "We have built a strong, global and growing business around this model, and plan to continue to use the phrase "app store" to describe what we do. This move by Apple is yet more proof that the company tends to act as if it is above the law, and even as one of the smaller players in the space, we won't be bullied by Apple."
A spokeswoman for Apple didn't comment on the letter to GetJar. Commenting on the injunction denial in the Amazon case, she reiterated a statement—issued in March when Apple brought suit—that the company "asked Amazon to not copy the App Store name because it will confuse and mislead customers."
GetJar may be able to fight the suit from Apple due to a $25 million investment in February from Tiger Global Management LLC and Accel Partners.
Others have not fared as well. Amahi, a small software maker who received a similar letter, said recently on its website that it doesn't "have the resources to fight this battle." Instead, the company is holding a contest among its users to rename its application marketplace.
GetJar currently offers 150,000 free mobile applications that work on Google Inc.'s Android and other mobile operating systems, and it has seen more than two billion downloads to date. Apple recently said its App Store passed 15 billion downloads, with 425,000 apps available.